Land O’ Lakes

Land O' Lakes, Inc. products are marketed and sold by Dean Foods, the leading producer of fluid milk and dairy products in the United States and the second largest dairy company in the world. Dean is second only to Nestle in terms of global dairy sales, at over 7 billion dollars in 2003. The company currently controls approximately 35% of the U.S. milk market and 70% of the U.S. organic milk market.

Land 0' Lakes is one of the largest dairy co-ops in the U.S., with over 7,000 dairy farmers and 1,300 community cooperatives. It provides its members with wholesale fertilizer and crop protection products, seed, and animal feed. Its oldest and best known product, Land 0' Lakes butter, is the top selling brand in the country. The company also produces packaged milk, margarine, sour cream and cheese. The animal-feed division, Land O'Lakes Purina Feed, is a leading animal and pet food maker.

In the fiscal year ending in December of 2008, Land O' Lakes reported sales of approximately 12 billion dollars and had 9,100 employees.

Supplier charged with cruelty
In September of 2009, People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) revealed footage from a five-month undercover investigation of a Pennsylvania dairy CAFO (Confined Animal Feeding Operation]] or factory farm, that supplies milk to Land O'Lakes, the largest seller of branded butter in the U.S. The footage documented abuse and neglect of cows and calves at the facility.  Cows in pain and unable to stand were forced to move by being electro-shocked and stabbed with a pocket knife.  Sick and injured cows were left to languish in their own waste for days and even weeks, without veterinary care.  In one case, workers were told to wrap an elastic band around a cow's gangrenous, infected teat to "amputate" it. The cow deteriorated for 11 days before she finally died.

Charges against the farm's owners were approved and filed by a local magisterial district judge. If convicted, the penalty is up to 90 days in jail and $750 in fines.

Undercover Investigation
The investigation revealed routine neglect and cruelty to cows at the company's facilities. Over the course of several months, deplorable and filthy conditions were documented. Pens were filled with deep excrement. Milking cows suffered from various chronic and untreated diseases and conditions. Some so severe that they eventually collapsed in their own filth, unable to move. Cows and calves were neither treated nor euthanized in a timely manner, if at all. Land O'Lakes "inspected" the farm as recently as June 2009. They noted that there were areas in need of cleaning but approved the facility nonetheless. The owner and one of his sons were video taped electro-shocking cows who were in too much pain to stand up. One of the sons kicked a cow and jabbed her with the blade of a pocket knife. Both the father and son were charged with animal cruelty.

Dairy industry's standard practices also led to suffering for these cows. In order to make milking easier, cows' tails were amputated by tightly binding them with elastic bands, causing skin and tissue to slowly die and slough off. This leaves them unable to swat away flies as well as leading to the spread of disease. Cows and calves were forced to live constantly in their own filth pens and barns. The floors covered in deep excrement, causing foot and hoof problems and fostering disease. Calves rescued from the farm had pneumonia, "manure scald," ringworm, pinkeye and parasites. Some cows suffered from respiratory distress and had nasal discharge streaming down their faces. Abscesses were common. Some would burst and ooz pus, even as cows were being milked. According to meat and dairy industry expert Dr. Temple Grandin:


 * "The conditions are absolutely atrocious. ... It was obvious that the place was seldom cleaned and ... that many sick animals were not receiving veterinary treatment. ... The dairy manager totally NEGLECTED his animals. ... Many animals suffer greatly."

According to Daphna Nachminovich, PETA's Vice President of Cruelty Investigations in a St. Paul news conference:


 * “Just the deplorable conditions that the animals were kept in made for not just cruelty, but also a health concern for the consumer.”

The video and photo evidence was recorded at the Deitz family dairy farm in Shamokin, Pennsylvania. A former employee of the farm provided the video to PETA after repeated attempts to get the farm to take better care of its cows. On September 22nd, the whistle blower filed fifteen summary charges of animal neglect and abuse against the dairy farm in Pennsylvania magistrate court. The farm is one of 3000 suppliers of milk to the Land O’ Lakes dairy co-operative. According to Ms. Nachminovich:


 * “We are alleging that there is a good chance that milk coming out from this farm could be contaminated given the conditions that the cows were living in."

Company statement
According to the company's statement:


 * “Land O'Lakes is strongly committed to the proper care and humane treatment of animals, and we take any such allegations of animal mistreatment extremely seriously. Land O'Lakes does not own cows. Our milk supply comes from members who are independent owners and operators of dairy farms. However, we do take any allegations related to animal treatment among our suppliers very seriously and are looking aggressively into this situation.”

PETA requested that the company use a 12-point animal welfare plan it developed to ensure safe and ethical treatment of cows at the company's dairy suppliers. ,

Land O'Lakes concludes "investigation"
Land O'Lakes stressed that the company "does not own cows" and their milk supply comes from "members who are independent dairy farm owners and operators." However, shortly after the public airing of documented abuse and neglect, company personnel "surveyed the farm" and followed up with a "thorough audit conducted by four independent veterinarians of the farm's herd and animal housing facility." According to a written assessment from the veterinarians, the cows were in "good health. ...No evidence of animal mistreatment was found.":


 * "The veterinarians did cite some areas for improvement, including remodeling the space where cows are housed, use of more bedding for the animals, and improving ventilation, hygiene and animal disposal practices."

The company is "working with the member to make these improvements" and will "monitor the farm and take any additional action that is deemed necessary."

Examples of documented abuse & neglect

 * "March 27, 2009: Cow #501 incurred these pus-filled, infected leg wounds after becoming trapped in a broken wooden wall, lying helplessly for at least 24 hours. Later, when she resisted putting weight on the injured leg, the farm's owner used a high-voltage electric prod to force her to stand up.
 * March 31, 2009: This weak, emaciated cow, #879, collapsed and had to lie in a deep pool of urine and feces for more than 24 hours, without access to food or water. She was eventually shot and killed.
 * May 21, 2009: When cow #401 got caught on a bolt sticking out of one of the bars in the stall, the dairy farm's owner reportedly freed her from the bolt by cutting deeply into her leg muscles with a knife.
 * June 9, 2009: Cow #929 collapsed in the inches-deep urine and fecal matter that cover the barn's passageways. She flailed and struggled to get up while other cows walked into and over her.
 * August 13, 2009: When PETA rescued this male calf, he could not stand and was nearly unconscious. He was diagnosed by a large-animal veterinarian as suffering from dehydration, pinkeye, pneumonia, ringworm, and lice and was determined to be approximately 100 pounds underweight.
 * August 19, 2009: This calf was only semi-conscious and unable to stand when he was purchased from the farm. The examining large-animal veterinarian found him to be 100 pounds underweight and recommended reporting his neglected condition to authorities."

See also Photo Gallery: Inside a Land O'Lakes Milk Supplier.

Yet, according to a "thorough audit" by "four independent veterinarians of the farm's herd and animal housing facility," the cows were in "good health" and "no evidence of animal mistreatment was found." Furthermore, the company has been "actively involved in developing national animal care guidelines over the past two to three years."

The statement is entirely unreferenced and does not even bother to refute or address specific issues, documentation and footage of abuse and neglect. Aside from the obvious cruelty issues, there is also the matter of health and safety concerns. This facility and most likely others as well, was filthy and disease ridden with animals literally living and dying in their own excrement. Obviously sick animals, some with running sores and infected, gangrenous teats, continued to be milked.

Animals in agriculture
It is worth noting that many agricultural veterinarians endorse practices which are not supported by the animal welfare community or the general public. For example, the American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) is a professional association and industry lobbying organization for veterinarians and affiliated industries in animal commerce and agriculture. A review of AVMA policies reveals that standards for farm animals generally echo agricultural industry recommendations. In fact the AVMA lobbies against animal welfare legislation. See also AVMA, sections 1 & 2.

Customary agricultural practices
No federal law protects farm animals from cruelty. 30 U.S. states specifically exempt "customary or normal" farming practices from the legal definition of animal cruelty.

Confined Animal Feeding Operations (CAFOs)
Between 1940 and 2007, the average amount of milk produced per cow rose from 2 to 10 tons per year. In 2006, the U.S. dairy industry produced over 20 billion gallons of milk. Although genetic selection and feeding are used to increase production efficiency, cows do not adapt well to high milk yields or high grain diets. Metabolic disorders are common and millions of cows suffer from mastitis (a painful udder infection), lameness and infertility. CAFOs confine cattle to barns or feed lots. Some cows are housed indoors year round and lactating cows are often restrained in tie stalls or stanchions. Organic farms are required to provide some access to pasture, but large dairies often purchase most of their feed as well.

Dairy cows are taken from their mother immediately after birth. Male calves are sold for veal or castrated and raised for beef. Calves raised for "special-fed veal" are kept in veal crates and slaughtered when they are between 16 and 18 weeks old. For "bob veal", they are killed at 3 weeks or younger. Female calves are commonly subjected to tail docking, dehorning and the removal of extra teats. They are fed colostrum until they are weaned at 8 weeks, then fed milk replacer or unsaleable waste milk. Every year, hundreds of thousands of female calves die before they are even weaned of scours, diarrhea and other digestive problems. Though they don't reach maturity until at least 4 years, dairy cows give birth at 2 years and are bred approximately 60 days after giving birth. Every year, about a quarter of the dairy cows who have survived the farms are sent to slaughter, usually due to reproductive problems or mastitis. Cows may live over 20 years but are generally killed at about 5 years. A "downer" is an animal who cannot stand or walk. It is estimated there are about 500,000 cattle on U.S. farms, feedlots or sent to slaughter facilities that are too sick, weak or injured to walk or stand; most are dairy cows. See also animals raised & hunted for food.

Key executives

 * Peter Kappelman - Chairman
 * Ronnie Mohr - First Vice Chairman
 * Chris Policinski - President & CEO
 * Steve Dunphy - Executive VP & COO, Dairy Foods Value Added
 * Jerry Kaminski - Executive VP & COO, Dairy Foods Industrial
 * Dave Hoogmoed - Executive VP & COO, Feed
 * Rod Schroeder - Executive VP & COO, Crop Protection Products
 * Mike Vande Logt - Executive VP & COO, Seed
 * Fernando Palacios - Executive VP, Operations & Supply Chain
 * Dan Knutson - Senior VP & CFO
 * Peter Janzen - Senior VP & General Counsel
 * Barry Wolfish - Senior VP, Corporate Marketing & Communications
 * Karen Grabow - Senior VP, Human Resources
 * Jim Fife - Senior VP, Member Affairs & Business Development Services
 * J.P. Ruiz-Funes - Senior VP, Corporate Strategy & Business Development
 * Alan Pierson - Western Region Liaison

Agricultural Regions board

 * Harley Buys - Edgerton, MN
 * Mark Christenson - Madelia, MN
 * Jim Hager - Colby, WI
 * Jim Miller - Hardy, NE
 * Doug Reimer - Guttenbergh, IA
 * Rich Richey - Columbus, NE
 * James Deatherage - Bryan, TX
 * Myron Voth - Walton, KS
 * Ronnie Mohr - Greenfield, IN
 * Robert Marley - Seymour, IN

Advisory

 * David Andresen - Britton, SD
 * Ron Muzzall - Oak Harbor, WA
 * Howard Liszt - Wayzata, MN
 * Robert Thompson - Urbana, IL
 * Galen Vetter - Lake City, MN

Dairy Regions board

 * Larry Kulp - Martinsburg, PA
 * Tom Wakefield - Bedford, PA
 * Al Wanner - Narvon, PA
 * Mark Clark - Rollingstone, MN
 * Paul Kent - Mora, MN
 * Pete Kappelman - Two Rivers, WI
 * Wayne Wedepohl - Sheboygan Falls, WI
 * James Netto - Hanford, CA
 * Ben Curti - Tulare, CA
 * Cornell Kasbergen - Tulare, CA
 * John Zonneveld - Laton, CA
 * Bob Bignami - Orlan, CA

Contact
4001 Lexington Ave., North Arden Hills, MN 55112

Phone: 651-481-2222 Fax: 651-481-2000 Toll Free: 800-328-9680

Web address: http://www.landolakes.com/

Sourcewatch articles

 * American Veterinary Medical Association
 * Dean Foods
 * Humane Movement
 * Meat & Dairy industry
 * National Dairy Council
 * People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals
 * Processed food industry
 * Richard Berman cares about animals: clients exposed
 * U.S. Department of Agriculture
 * U.S. Government's War on Animals
 * War on Animals

External articles

 * Stephanie Ernst Investigation: Abhorrent Cruelties for Land O'Lakes Dairy, Change.org, October 1, 2009
 * Land O'Lakes facility is found inhumane: Cows are left to suffer and die slow deaths without being cared for or put out of their misery, Squidoo.com, accessed February 2010